About Me

Monday, May 16, 2016

THE MARK IN AMERICA ISSUE #4, PAGES 16 & 17

Page
16 was really difficult. The plot out line by the series writer, Mike Barr,
called for The Mark to jump out of the laundry truck and throw it at the crowd
of on-coming soldiers. The soldiers fire on the truck, hitting its gas tank,
which catches fire. The burning truck’s momentum carries to a nearby power
station where it collides and explodes at the top of Page 17.

Panel
1 continues and broadens the humor beat at the bottom of page 15 (The Mark
lands in a laundry truck) by having our hero recover with the nether garments
of a Lutzan soldier draped over his face. Unfortunately he didn’t have any time
to appreciate whatever erotic appeal this circumstance might have held for him.

Panel
3 took two days all by itself, two miserable days where I repeatedly asked
myself how Alex Toth would have handled drawing the underside of a truck. I
toyed with the idea of filling it in with black, but suspected it would look
shitty and, if so, be really difficult to correct. Part of the problem was, I
had only toy cars as reference, so I had to fake it as best I could. I had to
draw it in perspective, and light it. It turned out really well, and color
copies of the printed page went into my portfolio for a while. I think it has a
real feel of weight, of heft. I almost feel sorry for the fascist soldiers
about to be crushed.

It
(the felt weight of the thrown truck) also helps “sell” the truck tumbling down
the hill and crashing into the power station at the end of the street (panels 4
& 5), the punctured gas tank catching fire in the process.

The
explosion in page 17, panel 1 is swiped from Swamp Thing #. I’m including a
scan of the original version, by Bernie Wrightson.

These are pages 16 & 17 for "The Mark"
issue 4, volume 2, otherwise known as "The Mark In America",
published by Dark Horse Comics in March 1994. Written by Mike Barr, Drawn by
Brad Rader